With the Fifth Army, Italy
Pfc. Frank T. Harada recently was awarded the distinguished unit badge for his part in three battles in which he fought as a member of the 2nd battalion of the 442nd Japanese American combat team.
The battalion was given the distinguished unit citation for out standing performance of duty in one battle on the Fifth army front in Italy and two battles in France. Each member is entitled, by virtue of the citation, to wear the blue and gold badge on the right breast.
In the first action cited, the battalion took a hill dominating important supply routes running through Alsace into Germany. Protected by dense minefields, the hill was defended by three German tanks and many self-propelled guns, mortars, machineguns and other automatic weapons and small arms. More than six enemy machineguns were silenced. An enemy command post and considerable quantities of German equipment were seized, 125 Germans were killed, and 20 were captured.
Seizing another strategic height in the other battle in France for which they were cited, the Japanese Americans at the same time eliminated a serious flanking threat which jeopardized the 3rd “Marne” division and the 45th “Thunderbird” division. The maneuver, envelopment of a German battle group by two of the battalion’s rifle companies and driving the group up against other elements of the 442nd, also availed the Seventh army of a paved supply route and denied the enemy roads by which he might have reinforced other units in the sector.
At a cost of five men killed and nine wounded, the battalion in this battle took 95 prisoners, including a German battalion commander, and killed 100 of the enemy.
Lieutenant Colonel James M. Hanley of Mandan. N. Dak, commanded the battalion while it was in France.
Giving impetus to the climatic advance across the Po valley in Italy, the 2nd battalion took three commanding heights in five days of fighting near the Ligurian Sea coast and enabled other Fifth army troops to take Massa and Carrara, vital road junctions, without a fight. Terrain conditions forbade use of mules for bringing forward supplies, which had to be hand-carried, and the enemy’s heavy firepower, from field artillery, mortars and machineguns and other automatic weapons, was augmented by fire of long-range, coast artillery.
In this battle, the battalion destroyed 20 German machineguns, seized large quantities of material, killed 107 Germans and took 102 prisoners.
Major Robert A. Gopel of Little Rock. Ark., formerly of Chillicothe. Ill., present commander, led the battalion in the Italian operation.
“The courage, determination and esprit de corps evidenced by the officers and men of the 2nd battalion, 442nd regimental combat team,’’ the citation stated, “exemplify the highest traditions of the armed forces of the United States.”
The distinguished unit citation earned by the 2nd battalion is the third to be conferred upon elements of the 442nd regiment. The regiment’s 100th infantry battalion previously was given the citation for distinguishing itself in action in Italy, and the O’Connor task force, composed of company F and company U was cited for an action in the Vosges mountains in France
The Herald-News, Wolf Point, MT, September 6, 1945